WOOD END ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PARENT HANDBOOK Wood End Wildcats are responsible, respectful, honest, engaged & safe! Dear Members of the Wood End Elementary School Community, Welcome to the 2020-21 school year, which is certain to be a year filled with changes. This handbook includes helpful information, policies, and procedures about our school. It has been updated to reflect the many changes we have implemented due to COVID-19. It also includes our behavioral expectations for students, which are designed to keep all members of our school community safe and engaged, as well as our core values. At Wood End, our students are responsible, respectful, honest, engaged and safe. We will partner with all our families to ensure a culture of respect, safety, and compassion. It is important that all students feel safe to learn and grow as individuals both academically and socially. The policies and procedures, as outlined in this handbook, are in place to make your elementary school experience a successful one. I look forward to welcoming our students and families in September to begin a new and exciting school year. Thank you in advance for your help in keeping our school a safe and nurturing community for students, families, and staff. Best, Dr. Joanne King Principal Wood End Elementary School’s Mission Statement Wood End Elementary School seeks to create a safe and supportive learning environment. We will work to achieve this aim through the implementation of a tiered support system that promotes clearly defined and consistent student expectations and accountabilities based on our core values, communication and collaboration within our school community, reliance on data for decision making purposes, and an efficient and effective response to the needs of our students who require additional support to be successful. We will foster an environment that focuses on our students’ success! Reading Public School Mission Statement The Reading Public Schools strive to ensure that all students will have common challenging, meaningful learning experiences in the academics, health and wellness, the arts, community service, co-curricular activities and athletics. We will lead and manage our school community to reflect the values and culture of the Reading Community, and guide and support our students to develop the appropriate skills, strategies, creativity, and knowledge necessary to be productive informed independent citizens in a global society. 2 "If you would like this document translated, please call 781-670-2883" Mandarin 如果你希望这份文件加以翻译，请致电告知。781-670-2883 Portuguese "se você quizer este documento traduzido, por favor ligue" 781-670-2883 Spanish Si quiere que se traduzca este documento, por favor, llame.781-670-2883 Luganda Oba oyagala ekiwandiko kino kivvuunulwe, tukubire essimu" 781-670-2883 Kiswahili Ukipenda hati hi itafsiriwe, tunapenda otupigie simu 781-670-2883 Korean 이 서류의 번역본을 원하시면 전화로 연락해 주세요 781-670-2883 2883-670-781المرجو اﻻتصال بنا اذا أردتم ترجمة هذه الوثيقة Arabic Vietnamese " Nếu ông muốn tài liệu nầy được dịch sang Việt ngữ xin hãy gọi" 781-670-2883 अगर आप इस दतावेज का अनुवाद करना चाहते हो तो कृ पया फोन कीजजये 781-670-2883 Hindi Creole si ou swete yo tradwi dokiman sa a, rele souple 781-670-2883 ඔබ මෙෙ මේඛනය පවතනය කරවා ගැ엓ෙට කැෙ뗒 න, කණාකර අප අෙත엊න 781-670-2883 Sinhalese 3 Table of Contents SCHOOL DIRECTORY Telephone Numbers Page 8 SCHOOL OPERATIONS School Hours Page 8 Entrance Requirements Page 8 Visitors Page 9 Arrival/Drop-Off Procedures Page 9 Dismissal/Placard Procedures Page 10 Bicycle Safety Page 11 Walkers Page 11 Tardy Policy Page 11 Early Dismissal Page 11 Absentee Verification Policy Page 12 No School Policy Page 13 Connect-ED® Page 13 SCHOOL POLICIES Animal/Pet Policy Page 13 Bringing Objects to School Page 14 Class Parties / Birthday Celebrations Page 14 CORI Requirements Page 14 Dress Standards Page 14 Field Trips Page 15 Fire/Safety Drills and Emergency Procedures Page 15 Gifts to School Personnel Page 16 4 Homework Guidelines Page 16 Insurance Page 17 Lost & Found Page 17 Lunch Program Page 17 Move-Up Day Page 18 Parent Volunteers Page 18 Photographs and Video Recording Page 18 School Debts Page 19 School Pictures Page 19 Security Cameras in Schools Page 19 Snacks Page 19 Teacher – Student Assignments Page 19 Telephones Page 20 Testing Schedule Page 20 Vacations Page 20 HEALTH POLICIES Allergy Guidelines Page 21 Health Screening Page 21 Medication Policy Page 22 No Live-Lice Policy Page 22 SCHOOL PROGRAMS After School Activities Page 22 Art Page 23 Reading METCO Program Page 23 Computer/Technology Usage Page 23 5 Enrichment Programs Page 24 Health & Physical Education Page 24 Library/Media Center Page 24 Music Page 24 School Council Page 25 Understanding Disabilities Page 25 HOME/SCHOOL COMMUNICATION Conferences – Parent/Teacher Page 25 Curriculum Nights/Open House Page 26 Online Communication Page 26 Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) Page 26 Room Parents Page 27 APPENDICES Student Behavior and Approach to Discipline Page 28 Suspension Policy Page 29 Bullying Prevention and Intervention Page 29 Discipline of Students with Disabilities Page 37 Hazing Policy Page 43 Anti-Discrimination Policy Page 45 Defining Discrimination and Harassment Page 51 Parental Rights Policy Page 53 Student Records Page 53 District-wide Curriculum Accommodation Plan Page 55 Prevention of Physical Restraint Policy Page 55 McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Page 58 6 District Acceptable Use Policy Page 59 User Contract, K-5 Page 63 Wood End Activities Contract Page 64 7 SCHOOL DIRECTORY Telephone Numbers Dr. Joanne E. King, Principal Mrs. Jessica Hester, Assistant Principal Mrs. Lisa Finigan, Administrative Assistant Main Office. .(781) 942-5420 Fax. .(781) 942-5428 Absentee Line. .. .(781) 942-5420 (Press 1) Superintendent’s Office. (781) 944-5800 School webpage: http://www.reading.k12.ma.us/woodend SCHOOL OPERATIONS School Hours For full day students in grades K-5, school begins at 8:15 a.m. and ends at 2:45 p.m. each day, Monday through Thursday. On Friday this year, the school session ends at 11:00 a.m. The early closing every Friday enables teachers to participate in various workshops, planning sessions, and conferences. • 8:15 a.m. Entrance Begins ▪ We encourage students to plan their arrival to coincide with this time. ▪ Students in Grades K-5 should proceed directly to their designated classroom • 8:25 a.m. Beginning of school day ▪ Any student who arrives after 8:25 a.m. is considered late and should sign in at the office to receive a tardy pass before going to his/her classroom. • 2:45 p.m. End of school day – dismissal ▪ On Fridays, the school day ends at 11:00 a.m. for all students. Entrance Requirement for Kindergarten To be eligible for admission to kindergarten, a child must have reached the age of 5 years on or before August 31st of the entering year. Kindergarten Screening takes place each year during the preceding spring. Upon entering school, each child is required to present: 1. A birth certificate; 2. A record of immunization from the health care provider showing compliance with current Massachusetts Department of Public Health requirements of immunization which includes a lead screening date; 3. A copy of a current physical exam by the child’s health care provider; and 4. Proof of residency acceptable by the school district Any questions regarding health requirements should be addressed to the school nurse. 8 Visitors For the safety of all, visitors to Wood End Elementary School between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. must report to the main entrance, state their purpose for entering the building, and then sign in at the Main Office. Visitors must obtain a badge that will be displayed visibly during their visit. This practice will ensure that only properly identified and approved visitors will be admitted to classrooms where they may have direct or incidental contact with students. If visitors do not have a badge, they will be stopped and asked to report to the office. This process helps to ensure the safety of the children while at school. While the School Committee encourages parents and guests to learn more about the instructional programs taking place within our school, it has established guidelines for visitations. Prior arrangements to observe classrooms must be made with the Principal at least 48 hours in advance of arriving at the building. Classroom observations are strongly discouraged during the first three weeks of school and during the month of June. Note: Visitors will not be allowed into the school building this year due to the restrictions of COVID-19, unless by appointment only. Arrival/Drop-off Procedures For the safety of the children, parents/guardians are not permitted to drive their vehicles into the staff parking area at any time while the children are coming to or leaving the school. Students may not arrive earlier than 8:10 a.m. At 8:15, the teachers will meet their students in their classrooms. Thus year, parents are asked to remain outside and are not allowed to escort their child to the classroom. Idling of Motor Vehicles - For the safety of staff and students school policies restrict operators of school buses and personal motor vehicles, including students, faculty, staff and visitors, from prolonged idling of such vehicles on school grounds and violators may be subject to a fine. Safety During Morning Drop-off: When dropping off in the entrance area at the front of the school: • All vehicles must pull ahead as far as possible; • Once in the “drop off zone” marked with orange cones, children must immediately exit the vehicle on the right-hand side, nearest the sidewalk; • Parents are asked to stay in their vehicle at drop off; • Traffic should be in a single line only; • Vehicles should not jump out of line after the child has left the vehicle.